How to Enable or Disable Password Expiration in Windows 11

Why Password Expiration Matters

Windows 11 password expiration is a security step that makes you change your password often. This helps keep your account safe if someone finds out your current password.

A local account password will expire when a maximum (42 days by default) and minimum (0 days by default) password age has been reached by default.

A Microsoft account password will expire every 72 days by default.

Option One

Enable or Disable Password Expiration for Local Account in Local Users and Groups

You can turn password expiration on or off for a local account in Windows 11 using the Local Users and Groups tool, but you need to be an administrator to do it.

1. Open Local Users and Groups (lusrmgr.msc).
2. Do the following:

   • Click on the Users folder in the left panel.
   • Double-click on the local account name you want to change in the middle panel.
3. In the General tab, check (to disable – this is the default) or uncheck (to enable) Password never expires for what you want. Then click OK.
   

   📝Note

   The Password never expires option will be grayed out if the User must change password at next logon box is checked.
4. If you want, you can also change the maximum and minimum password age for local accounts.
5. You can now close Local Users and Groups if you want.

Option Two

Enable or Disable Password Expiration for Local Account in Command Prompt

⚠️ Requires admin privileges

1. Open Windows Terminal (Admin), and select Command Prompt.

Enable Password Expiration for Local Account(s)

You can make a local account’s password expire in Windows 11 by using a Command Prompt command. This command tells Windows that users must change their password after a set time.

2. Type one of the commands below into the command prompt and press Enter:
   

   For all existing local accounts:

   
   

   wmic UserAccount set PasswordExpires=True

   
   

   OR

   
   

   For a specific local account:

   
   

   wmic UserAccount where Name="adminuser" set PasswordExpires=True

   
   

   Replace adminuser with the actual username of the local account you want to enable password expiration for.

3. If you want, you can also change the maximum and minimum password age for local accounts.

Disable Password Expiration for Local Account(s)

Windows 11 allows users to prevent a local account's password from expiring by using a Command Prompt command. This specific command changes the password setting to ensure it never expires, mirroring the default behavior for new local accounts.

Password expiration in Windows 11 will be disabled, meaning your account password will never expire. This change prevents users from being forced to change their password periodically, a security measure often implemented every 42 days.

2. Type one of the commands below into the command prompt and press Enter:
   

   For all existing local accounts:

   
   

   wmic UserAccount set PasswordExpires=False

   
   

   OR

   
   

   For a specific local account:

   
   

   wmic UserAccount where Name="adminuser" set PasswordExpires=False

   
   

   Replace adminuser with the actual username of the local account you want to disable password expiration for.

3. You can now close Windows Terminal (Admin) if you want.

Option Three

Enable or Disable Password Expiration for Local Account in PowerShell

⚠️ Requires admin privileges

1. Open Windows Terminal (Admin), and select Windows PowerShell.

Enable Password Expiration for Local Account(s)

What happens: Your password will need to be changed after it expires.

2. Type one of the commands below into the command prompt and press Enter:
   

   For all existing local accounts:

   
   

   Get-LocalUser | Set-LocalUser -PasswordNeverExpires $false

   
   

   OR

   
   

   For a specific local account:

   
   

   Set-LocalUser -Name 'adminuser' -PasswordNeverExpires $false

   
   

   Replace adminuser with the actual username of the local account you want to enable password expiration for.

3. If you want, you can also change the maximum and minimum password age for local accounts.
4. When finished, go to step 5 below.

Disable Password Expiration for Local Account(s)

Note: This is the default setting.

Disabling Windows 11 password expiration stops forced password changes for users. When this setting is off, a user's password never expires, eliminating reminders to update login details. This change is common for accounts needing constant access, such as service accounts.

2. Type one of the commands below into the command prompt and press Enter:
   

   For all existing local accounts:

   
   

   Get-LocalUser | Set-LocalUser -PasswordNeverExpires $true

   
   

   OR

   
   

   For a specific local account:

   
   

   Set-LocalUser -Name 'adminuser' -PasswordNeverExpires $true

   
   

   Replace adminuser with the actual username of the local account you want to disable password expiration for.

3. You can now close Windows Terminal (Admin) if you want.

Option Four

Enable or Disable Password Expiration for Microsoft Account Online at Microsoft

You can manage password expiration for your Microsoft account online through Microsoft’s website. Changing your password on their site is how you set or remove the expiration policy.

1. Go to the Change your password site at Microsoft for your Microsoft account.
2. Sign in to the Microsoft site with your Microsoft account to verify.
3. Do the following:

   • Type your current password.
   • Type a new password.
   • Reenter the password to confirm.
   • Check (to enable) or uncheck (to disable – this is the default) Make me change my password every 72 days for what you want.
   • Click Save.
4. Sign in to the Microsoft site with your Microsoft account’s new password to verify.
   

Summary

In Windows 11, you can control password expiration using a few different methods. You can use Local Users and Groups, Command Prompt, PowerShell, or manage your Microsoft account online.

• Option One: Use Local Users and Groups (easiest for beginners, Pro/Enterprise/Education editions only)
• Option Two: Use Command Prompt with WMIC commands (works on all editions)
• Option Three: Use PowerShell commands (works on all editions)
• Option Four: Change settings online for your Microsoft account

Password expiration strengthens account security by forcing regular password changes in Windows 11. Users can disable this security measure if frequent password updates seem inconvenient. Administrator rights are necessary to make these changes on the computer.